The Mission
by Jupiter's Promise
Summary: The whole FFVIII Gang go on a mission, in the course of which Squall, Quistis and their new Chocobo are hurled into the past. This is a Quall or a Quistis and Squall romance in later chapters. Slightly Revised!!!
1. The Briefing

Squall stepped into Cid's office. He was the last to arrive. Cid was sitting behind his desk quietly conversing with Xu. Irvine, Selphie, Rinoa and Seifer were in another corner. Probably conversing about the joint wedding the two couples would be having in early spring. The wedding was to be an outdoor one, and would take place in a huge flower field owned by garden. Squall smiled, although Selphie and Irvine had been in love for as long as he could remember, it had not been so with Rinoa and Seifer. They had fallen in love at the SeeD ball, however things had gotten complicated, and it had taken until after the battle with Ultimecia for them to realize their true feelings again. _And where does that leave you?_ Squall's mind asked him. Squall quickly shook away the thought, he had never truly loved Rinoa, however she had given him a taste of what it meant to be loved, and now he needed that feeling in his life. Coming back to reality Squall returned to scanning the room. Zell was finishing a hotdog while watching as Edea played Quistis in checkers. "Ahh Squall, you're here." said Cid "Looks like I'm late sorry guys, I had to take a shower." replied Squall, running his hand through his hastily dried locks. "It's about time you took one." Joked Zell with a huge grin "Alright alright, everyone settle down." Cid said commanding everyone's attention, "We have called all of you here because you are the best Balamb Garden has to offer, and the mission ahead will require the special skills and talents of all of you." Everyone glanced at each other. There was rarely a mission so difficult that so many high-ranking SeeDs would be needed. "As I was saying," continued Cid "this mission will be very difficult, a strange unidentified monster has been terrorizing people all over the globe, one night a person in Shumi Village will disappear and the next it will be someone in Winhill. Individuals close to the event have sited the monster, and it supposedly resembles a Sphinx no one knows how it travels so fast, but all dispatched SeeD's have mysteriously disappeared. I don't like putting all of my best SeeD's in danger, but we have no better option, these mass killings must stop! We have reason to believe the creaure's main source of power is magic, although we have yet to identify the specific type of magic that is killing these people." Cid paused to allow this new information to sink in. "When will this mission be?" asked Seifer "You will leave immediately, we believe the monster's next target will be Dollet, because the annual freedom festival will be held there tommorow. We do not wish to cause chaos or disrupt the festival if we can help it, however no one will question your coming because, the festival is after all, to celebrate your achievements on your SeeD exam." Answered Cid " Basically you leave for Dollet by train A.S.A.P, then attend the festival, and working in groups of two, a girl and a boy, secure it. Please act as though you are normal couples just enjoying the ceremony, at twenty-one hundred hours if nothing has gone wrong we will meet back at the Dollet hotel." Cid nodded to Xu who picked up a box from the floor and, setting it on the desk pulled something out from it. She held in her hand a small silver thing resembling a pistol. "In addition to your own specialty weapons, each pair will receive one of these. This is a flare gun. Fire it like a normal gun into the air, and it will emit a large red flare. This will linger for about five minutes before dissipating. If you see it in the sky it means a team has located the monster. In that event, you will immediately proceed to back up the team fighting the monster, and anyone else who has arrived before you." Xu took a breath "We aren't sure the monster will appear at all, so if all goes well the evening will be a relaxing break for all of us." Xu took the box and Cid spoke again "these are the teams, Seifer and Rinoa will be stationed at the Square, Zell and Xu will be at the comm. Tower, Selphie and Invine will be in the streets among the shops, and finally Squall and Quistis will be at the beach." Xu handed everyone a flare gun and kept one for herself, then Cid spoke once more. "Please return to your rooms and pack, a car awaits you at the front gate, oh and one more thing, Squall, as you have experience in leading, you will be mission commander, all other decisions are up to you. I will also send updates to you as they come." Everyone in the room saluted, and returned to their rooms to pack.


	2. The Dance

Squall and Quistis sat facing each other. 

They were at a table set up near the large barbeque tent occupying the beach. Squall they were both eating hotdogs and watching a reenactment that one of Dollet's local middle schools was putting on of their very mission. 

As they watched, a seventh grader playing Squall ran from an undersized version of the X-ATM092. 

At the waters edge, a replica of an old SeeD ship awaited him. At the door stood the children playing Zell and Selphie. The crowd hushed as the creature grew closer, and closer still. 

Suddenly out of the boats hatch popped an eighth grader playing Quistis, and will a fake machine gun she ripped into the creature's side. 

The child playing Squall leapt, and landed safely on the deck of the ship. Immediately the curtain dropped. Everyone clapped, and the children came out to bow. 

Quistis looked at Squall, then at the water, staring into her reflection.

It had been so long ago, when she had just been his instructor. 

_You say that as though you have reached a higher standpoint in his mind, you were just his instructor, but now you two are really close. _

Quistis frowned as the sarcastic voice of reality floated up, seemingly coming from the apparition of herself on the water, and intervened with her thoughts.

_Are you any more to him now than you were then, or is he just nicer because Rinoa taught him to live a little?_

**But then, there's an improvement, no more Rinoa**. 

_And you two were a regular Romeo and Juliet before Rinoa came too._

**Thanks for the encouragement. **

Hey I am your sense of logic, I'll always be there for you. 

**Why doesn't he like me, do you think it's my looks, but I've got so many other admirers, I can't be that hideous, in fact, judging by the opinions of most other people, I'd say I'm at least pretty.**

_Hey, no argument here. _Replied her reflection and she began to laugh, which the reflection mimicked.

"Are you okay Quistis?" asked Squall, looking at her strangely. 

Immediately Quistis realized she had been laughing aloud, and began to blush as she muttered that she was fine. Talking to her reflection.

_You've lost it._

Quiet You. 

 Squall raised his eyebrow and their eyes met at length. Quistis' probed Squall's stormy gray orbs, and for a moment Squall had an urge to dive deep into the sea of her Crystalline blue ones. Now Squall Leonhart wasn't a coward, but he quickly looked back to the stage where a man had stepped up with a microphone. 

"Hello everyone and welcome to Dollet's 7th annual freedom festival, today we celebrate the day be were liberated from the Galbadian army's occupation." A cheer rang up in the crowd. 

"It is, my esteemed pleasure to announce that two very special people are joining us the evening. 

It gives me great honor to introduce two of the very SeeD's who played a part in this mission, Squall Leonhart and his former instructor Quistis Trepe." 

Squall's eyes shot up from his hot dog and he looked at Quistis, his expression betraying his confusion. 

She shrugged at him and slowly the two stood. A thousand faces scrutinized them as they walked to the stage.

The man spoke once more. "For your bravery in helping to restore peace to our small town, we present you with this." 

At this time two soldiers from Dollet came forward and handed a Chocobo to them. 

Taking the strange gift, Squall stared; this was a baby Chocobo, no more than 1 year old. Squall looked at Quistis, for they both knew that to refuse the gift would be rude, but what were two SeeD's going to do with a Chocobo? 

Before they could ponder the question any longer, the man spoke again. "Now this lovely couple will lead us in our first dance of the night, to the tune of the smash hit 'Eyes on you, Eyes on me' by Julia." 

Couple, I wish 

Quistis blushed and raised her hand to correct the man on their martial status, however before she could tap him on the back; Squall's hand took hers. 

Quistis looked at him uncertainly, and he smiled "Madam, may I have this Dance?" he asked. She studied him, and considered his request…for about a millisecond. 

"Why of course kind sir." She replied feeling relieved and happy to play along. When she felt his hand move to the small of her back she had to control herself to keep from shivering. 

She than moved her other free hand just below his neck and as the music began to play, the two became lost in it. The night continued on like this, and for sometime they continued dancing. 

Finally, as the clock struck ten, their 36th dance ended. Quistis glanced at the clock nonchalantly and then as she realized the time looked back up just to be sure she had seen it right. 

"Squall," she spoke "Hmm?" he relied as he spun her around. "We've been dancing for three hours," she pointed out "Plus we were supposed to meet at the hotel an hour ago." 

"Let's finish this dance, then we'll go back." Squall replied, and so as soon as it was over the pair reluctantly broke away from the dance's embrace. 

As they walked toward the hotel, a sound caused them to stop. Running up behind them was the Chicobo they had been given. 

They stopped, giving it a chance to catch up. "What should we do with it?" Squall wondered aloud "I guess we have to keep it," replied Quistis "I mean after all, they took it from it's mother and now it's touched human hands. No Chocobo would take it back now." 

"Are you crazy?" Squall cried, "We can't keep it." "Well then we can take it back with us and talk to Cid about what should be done with it, please Squall." Quistis was sure Squall would turn down her request, but his eyes fell on the helpless creature and softened. 

"Well," he began "I say we call it Boko." Quistis clapped her hands in delight, however just at that moment, a red flare shot into the air. 

The monster was upon them.


End file.
